Break Up the Mavs.

Well, you may have to forgive me if I have not paid major attention on this blog to our Dallas Mavericks. The fact is, this team has not been terribly compelling in the last calendar year, and certainly when reality came crashing down on this team last April, there was a call for a major over-haul to change the mix, the environment, and really, just to hit some sort of “era reset” on a group that seemed tired and played out to me.

However, they spent all summer with Josh Howard news items, and the cosmetic change of bringing in Rick Carlisle to employ his Princeton offense and his new voice in the room. Also, we were sold on the idea that there was a large improvement around the corner because Jason Kidd was going to attend a full training camp.
Well, the malaise has set in.

The Mavericks have grown tired and stale. It actually happened about April of 2007, but it may have taken until January 2009 for everyone to recognize what had happened.

Of course, that delay of recognition from the Mavs brass (read: Mark Cuban) cost the Mavs the “spinning their wheels” trade of Devin Harris and 2008 #1 and 2010 #1 and Diop and stuff for Jason Kidd.

Then, amazingly, the Mavs signed Diop for 5 years and 31 million.

Then, even more amazingly, the Mavs have apparently no use whatsoever for Diop.

Did I mention they are spinning their wheels?

Now, in their last 10 games, they are 5-5; With wins over the Clippers, Timberwolves, 76ers, Clippers and Knicks. Including one of the most incredible wins ever against Minnesota – so, we got that going for us. Which is nice.

Add to that a 28 point loss in Phoenix, a 20 point loss in Memphis, and losses to Sacramento, Utah, and Denver (without Carmelo) and you can see things slipping further and further away.

Last night, the Mavericks may have been victim of a bad break as they wasted quite a night from Dirk. But, this is a far bigger issue going right now.

The Mavericks MUST be coming to grips with the current mix not working. The
evidence is on the court, and now the evidence is in the rumor mill.

When stuff like the links below start showing up, you assume there is some level of fire around all of that smoke. But, I guess the proof will be in the pudding.

Is it something small? Like this Bobcat trade? I think that changes very little as far as changing the same group “Dirk-Josh-Jet-Damp” that has always been here since the 2006 Finals.

Or, Will they trade Josh? Will they trade Jet? Will they even entertain trading Dirk?

I know that Kevin Garnett benefited big time from being traded. But did Minnesota get anything back that leads you to believe they made the best decision for themselves? I like Al Jefferson plenty, but did they win that trade? No chance.
Did Memphis get anything back for Pau Gasol?

Did New Jersey get anything back for Jason Kidd? Wait. Forget that one.
Here are some of the more recent items with regards to a much needed Mavs face lift –don’t worry about the names, just make note of how the Mavericks are TALKING TO EVERYONE.

Hoopsworld …

The Mavericks Are Talking: Calling the Dallas Mavericks this year's "Chatty Cathy" might be an understatement. More than a handful of league executives have labeled the Mavericks' attempts at making a deal almost peculiar. The Mavericks over the past month have been pinging teams in the trade market trying to find a third team to pull off a deal. Early last week a prominent Western Conference executive told HOOPSWORLD he was told by the Mavericks directly that they had a deal with Toronto; Toronto later in the day denied such a deal was on the table. A Report this weekend suggested the Mavericks had the framework of a three-team deal with Charlotte and the Oklahoma City Thunder in place, a deal which would move out DeSagana Diop and return Raymond Felton to the Mavericks while moving Oklahoma City's Earl Watson to the Bobcats. The problem here is Thunder GM Sam Presti all but denied the deal was in the works to reporters who probed him on the topic yesterday. The quirky part of the whole thing is the Mavericks abruptly sat Diop versus the Sacramento Kings.
League rules prohibit teams from playing players involved in an active trade discussion. After the game Mavs Coach Rick Carlisle called the decision a coaching move, although it seems to line up nicely with the speculation the Mavs are close to a move. One executive characterized the Mavericks as calling frequently and offering up complex three-team scenarios involving other team's players in an effort to gain support, saying his club heard from the Mavericks two or three times per week. It is clear the Mavericks are being "creative" and aggressive in finding a deal, the problem may be that whatever you're hearing regarding the Mavericks' intention to deal may not be the deal that gets done - they are truly flooding the waters these days.

Mark Stein …

The Charlotte Bobcats, Dallas Mavericks and Oklahoma City Thunder put the pieces in place for a three-team trade late last week, but NBA front-office sources said Sunday that those talks have gone "dormant."

Sources told ESPN.com that the full deal, as originally constructed, would have sent Raymond Felton, Nazr Mohammed and Sean May from Charlotte to Dallas, landed Earl Watson and Dallas' DeSagana Diop with the Bobcats and shipped Jerry Stackhouse to the Thunder along with a future second-round pick.

The Boston Globe reported in its Sunday editions that a trade headlined by Felton and Watson was "in the works," but sources with knowledge of the talks told ESPN.com on Friday and again Sunday that the discussions have gone quiet.

"Dormant is a good word," one source said.

It was unclear Sunday night if the trade can still be resurrected or revised, but sources say one impediment is an injury suffered in Tuesday's victory over Boston by Bobcats rookie guard D.J. Augustin, which could suddenly make Charlotte reluctant to part with Felton. Augustin is expected to miss at least 10 days after he aggravated the abdominal injury in Saturday's victory over Washington.

If the trade can be revived, Watson would be moving to Charlotte as a veteran backup to Augustin, whose emergence has led many executives around the league to presume that Felton would be moved before the league's Feb. 19 trading deadline. Felton is playing on an expiring contract that pays him $4.1 million this season and will be a restricted free agent this summer.

The Bobcats, furthermore, have been to trying to add Diop to their front line as a defensive specialist since he was a free agent last summer. As ESPN.com reported in July, Charlotte offered Diop the same five-year deal worth more than $32 million that the 7-foot center wound up signing with the Mavericks.

Dallas has been shopping Stackhouse, Diop and Brandon Bass for weeks in hopes of acquiring a player of Felton's caliber. But if he winds up going to Dallas, Felton would have to fit into a rotation of lead guards which already features Jason Kidd, Jason Terry and J.J. Barea.

If these three-way talks dissolve completely, Dallas is expected to continue to push hard for at least one trade before the February deadline, with Stackhouse's cap-friendly contract and possibly another former All-Star -- swingman Josh Howard -- in play.

"Dallas is talking to everyone," one rival executive said.

There is the key of all of this:

"Dallas is talking to everyone," one rival executive said.

Good. I doubt they do anything gigantic right now. A trade of Kidd, for instance, is not bloody likely. They want money for the summer of 2010 (Bosh is the main target, I believe), but they don’t want to lose Kidd now, and be really bad in 2009-10. Why? Because they don’t own their 2010 pick, and if that turned out to be a high lottery pick – it would make the original Kidd deal look even more ridiculous. Imagine him playing somewhere else, and New Jersey is making the 8th pick that year, and they have Devin Harris in the All-Star game again. Ouch.

So, expect Kidd to be offered a 1 year deal this summer. Not sure that keeps him, but I would be shocked to see a Dirk or a Kidd trade anytime soon.

We should, however, see something soon.

Links:

Another quality hockey site I have found …illegal curve.com

Nice story on the Wire …

Star Wars moments on the Simpsons …

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